By Suzanna Kerridge, 25 September 2000 18:23
NEWS Spanish finance minister Cristobel Montoro claimed the government could use the tax to make up for a relative shortfall on the amounts raised.
Spain's four licences cost Airtel, Amena, Telefonica Moviles and the Xfera consortium E517m (£312m) in March, however, later auctions in Germany and the UK generated E50bn (£30bn) and E30bn (£20bn) respectively.
Andrew Peck, ebusiness consultant at The Smith Group, said: "It is not fair to agree on a method of distribution and then put a tax on it. The UMTS licenses have nothing to do with stimulating a market, it is all about generating cash."
But David Herbada, director general at Spanish subsidiary of research house, Durlacher Research, doubted whether the government's legal position is strong enough to carry out its threat.
"I do not know if this is possible as the current amount of money is fixed in a contract. If the government tries to impose the new tax then it could come up against a flank of lawyers."
He added it is the relatively low cost of licences that will make the technology a success in Spain.
"We have had a lot of auctions and prices are high, but given the prices paid for the four licences, Spain is in a really good position to actually make a profit from 3G services unlike operators who paid the really high prices."
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